Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 69
वृत्तं तस्मात्तु संरक्षेद्वित्तमेति गतं पुनः । अक्षीणो वित्ततः क्षीणो वृत्ततस्तु हतो हतः
vṛttaṃ tasmāttu saṃrakṣedvittameti gataṃ punaḥ | akṣīṇo vittataḥ kṣīṇo vṛttatastu hato hataḥ
Darum bewahre man die rechte Lebensführung; denn Reichtum kann, auch wenn er verloren ging, wiederkehren. Wer am Vermögen zugrunde geht, ist nicht wahrhaft zugrunde gegangen; wer aber an der Lebensführung zugrunde geht, der ist wirklich vernichtet.
Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) to the sages (deduced)
Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra
Type: kshetra
Scene: A moral allegory: on one side, a person losing coins yet standing firm; on the other, a person with wealth but falling into moral darkness. A central figure guards a lamp labeled ‘vṛtta’ (conduct), symbolizing the protected inner light.
FAQs
Moral conduct is the true capital; losing wealth is recoverable, but losing dharmic conduct is spiritual ruin.
Prabhāsakṣetra, where the māhātmya ties pilgrimage merit to sustained ethical conduct.
A practical injunction: protect vṛtta (right conduct/right livelihood) as essential for all religious acts, including dāna.